Our most recent school shooting (as of this writing) can’t be considered a rarity.

Since Jan. 1, seven school shootings have occurred during school hours, five of which resulted in death or injuries, with an average of one school shooting per week in the United States.

We’ve had 207 school shootings in the 21st century, plus many more dating back to every decade to the 1800s. Here in Salisbury, we’ve not been left unscathed. In 1873, a Salisbury teacher was shot and killed by an adult shooter while walking four students out.

Much has been discussed and implemented to make schools physically safer. What we don’t have nearly enough of is early intervention. By that, I mean we desperately need significantly more social workers and counselors in schools every day.

Wicomico County, for instance, has 24 public schools serving14,889 students. It has only 15 social workers to serve all those students, translating roughly to one social worker per every 993 students.

As a social worker, I assure you a caseload of nearly 1,000 children is no recipe for success.

Teachers are the front-line eyes and ears observing our children. They often see problems — even before busy parents do.

It is often said children are our future. The United State’s funding priorities mismatch that value.

I propose a three-pronged approach.

Continue improving school physical security.

Gun laws that make sense. A multi-generational NRA member speaking on NPR said he had previously enjoyed his NRA membership, but quit after it became a politically mired issue of guns versus kids. Does the Constitution intend for anyone to easily, quickly buy AR-15s? Those are not for target practice, hunting or self-protection. They are the nonmilitary version of guns designed and manufactured for our military, for the express purpose of killing other humans.

Dramatically increase the number of in-school, full-time counselors and social workers.

We have a fairly good profile of the typical shooter. Teachers are in a good position to alert an in-school counselor/social worker to a particular student’s possible need of assessment and/or help.

Obviously, we cannot stigmatize children who fit that general profile by singling them out. Nor is the profile exclusively predictive.

But the emotional, social and psychological needs of our future — children — extend far beyond prevention of death. Our current system is woefully inadequate to address those needs in any consistent or meaningful way.

There would need to be enough counselors in every school to enable them to know every student — enough so every student could have someone to go to if needed, or to express concerns to about a peer they fear may be potentially dangerous.

That requires courage, so let’s make it easier for them to come forward.

This, of course, would be cost-prohibitive for any school budget within our current system design.

But have you noticed how any cause that's popular enough, no matter the expense, somehow gets funded?

How often do you see proposed new and glamorous sports stadiums holding bake sales to raise funds? Or that $15 billion proposed wall?

I’d gladly trade it for school social workers. I’d bet a whole lot of other people would, too.

Jakota Herring, a psychotherapist in private practice in the Salisbury/Delmar area, is active in human and animal rights, and environmental causes.